OT - Leaves !

Super-H-Mike · Oct 29, 2012

Okay, so I get a ton of leaves to deal with every fall. What I have been doing for years is loading them in the manure spreader and just spreading them out in the field to get rid of them. After about six loads yesterday, I wondered if I could just run em through the square baler and toss the bales in the woods somewhere. Anybody tried this before? I am done now, so thinking of next year.

old · Oct 29, 2012

Shoot why not just take a piece of fence like what we call hog wire and make a circle out of it and then fill with the leaves. Let it sit that way and next year you will have a nice big pile of compost. If you have manure on hand just layer it and then you will have a pile of extra good compost. I feed my horse in such a way that they waste some of the hay and then I push that up in piles and let it compost down and it sure does make some good stuff to spread on the garden or fill my raised beds with

Michael Soldan · Oct 29, 2012

I know a chap that bales leaves,usually ends up with 25 or 30 bales,the bales are then used as bedding at a neighbours farm.I've taken bags of leaves to the farm and bedded with them..may as well use them for something.

RegulaRog · Oct 29, 2012

I would continue to spread them on the field. Leaves are very good for the ground organic matterwise.

Bkpigs · Oct 29, 2012

But the carbon content will tie up alot of Nitrogen

wolfman · Oct 29, 2012

Leaves have a natural growth inhibiter, which is why a mighty oak can't grow under a maple, for example, and crowd out the maple. One time many years ago I put many leaves on my garden, the next year corn would not even germinate. I have baled them and used them for bed -also a mistake.

Super-H-Mike · Oct 29, 2012

Thanks for the ideas guys. I look to just be rid of them, I have plenty of manure and compost for the garden and fields, and burning takes too long and kinda smokey! Was mostly wondering if the baler would actually make a bale out of them that could be handled easier.

JRSutton · Oct 29, 2012

I learned my lesson after too many years of raking.

I put mulching blades on the lawn tractor and I never raked again.

Might have to mow a few times to avoid doing to many at once, but beats raking any way you slice it.

Dave H (MI) · Oct 29, 2012

With respect, not ALL leaves inhibit growth and there are many trees which grow under other trees. Now there is a thing called juglone which is emitted by certain trees and if you should happen to put walnut leaves or, to a lesser extent, hickory on your beds some plants (but not all) will fail to grow or die if growing. Most sites list corn as tolerant of juglone though.

old · Oct 29, 2012

Funny I have oak maple and walnut trees all over the place and many side by side and they have been growing that way for over 32 years since they where here when I moved here 32 plus years ago

Tom Fleming · Oct 29, 2012

Nut trees, especially black walnut produce juglone. Other trees do not, but they do contain high levels of tannic acid.

Here is a good link for juglone:

http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/430/430-021/430-021.html

John G. Hasler · Oct 29, 2012

Don"t use walnut leaves (or sawdust or shavings) as bedding. The juglone will founder your livestock.

Tom Fleming · Oct 29, 2012

Yup. Black walnut and wild cherry leaves just don't mix with livestock, especially horses/ponies.

ss55 · Oct 29, 2012

If the leaves are still dry the easiest is to put mulching blades on the mower, close the discharge chute, and shread them where they lay. It can be very dusty and take several trips over the leaves to make them disappear.

Second best is to piie them up inside a wire fence and let them turn into compost. Mix in an equal weight of green grass clippings for nitrogen to speed the process along for some great compost.

flhr62 · Oct 30, 2012

(quoted from post at 19:05:36 10/29/12) I learned my lesson after too many years of raking.

I put mulching blades on the lawn tractor and I never raked again.

Might have to mow a few times to avoid doing to many at once, but beats raking any way you slice it.

I agree.

mkirsch · Oct 30, 2012

Yes, you CAN bale them up in a small square baler, if they're dry. Dad was playing around one unusually dry fall and tried the hay rake on the leaves. Then we had this HUGE windrow of leaves, so he got out the baler. Worked surprisingly well considering that baler wouldn't tie half the time on dry hay.

What you get is a VERY dense bale that weighs about 100lbs.

Just feed some hay in afterwards to get the leaf bales out, THEN clean the baler out. Leaf bales "melt" when you cut the strings.

OT - Leaves !

Super-H-Mike

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old

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Michael Soldan

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RegulaRog

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Bkpigs

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wolfman

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Super-H-Mike

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JRSutton

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Dave H (MI)

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old

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Tom Fleming

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John G. Hasler

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Tom Fleming

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ss55

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flhr62

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mkirsch

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